William Cooper Vennell Sr.

William Cooper Vennell of Maypearl, Texas passed away peacefully in his sleep on November 8, 2023 at the age of 86.  He was born in Camden, New Jersey on October 10, 1937 to Frank Howell Vennell Jr. and Mary Elizabeth Cooper Vennell, and was the youngest of 3 sons.  He served stateside with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve from October 1954 until June 1957.  He then joined the Army and served from June 1957 until June 1959.  He was assigned to the HQ 20^th Transportation Battalion, 1^st Division, and was in the 1^st Armored Personnel Carrier that crossed the Rhine River in Germany in 1958.

He met his beautiful wife, Pearl Sophie Kawczynski, and they married on September 10, 1960.  They stayed happily married for 62 years, until her unexpected death from ALS on August 3, 2022.  They had 3 children, all born in Camden, NJ.  He worked for National Freight for 60+ years, finally retiring February 28, 2023.

In May 2023, he finalized the sale of his Midlothian home to live with his daughters.  He spent the last 6 months of his life frequenting casinos and road tripping across the country visiting family, friends and new places.  He liked being on the go, and as a youngster, was known for always being missing.  His brother Bob remembers that as early as age 4, it was him and his older brother’s job to keep up with Bill.  It was their job to find him, whether it be before school, to come home to eat or at the end of the day.  He would wander off to visit friends, never to be found at the same place twice.  Dad never forgot his brothers resorted to tying him to a tree, but never understood why.  He truly enjoyed being around people.  He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, uncle, brother and son who loved unconditionally.  Nothing made him happier than being with family, helping others and traveling.  He was honestly the best, most generous and caring person ever and will be dearly missed.

Bill was a long-time member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Waxahachie, TX and the Knights of Columbus both in Waxahachie and Granbury, TX.

Bill is survived by his three children and spouses, Kimberly Vennell, Pamela Burns (Jeff), and William Vennell Jr. (Erin), his four grandchildren, James Wharton, Joseph Gutierrez, Megan Vennell and Cooper Vennell, his brother Robert Vennell of Bridgeton, NJ and many nieces and nephews.  He was preceded by death by his wife, Pearl Vennell, his parents Frank and Mary Vennell and his brother Frank Vennell Jr.

In lue of flowers, please donate to the American Parkinson Disease Association or Knights of Columbus Catholic Organization.